Backup systems are a vital part of a computer system. The ability to backup data provides security that the valuable data and time invested in processing the data by the computer system is not lost. Thus, backups should be as robust and reliable as possible. Many backups are designed to be archival in nature, such that the backup is maintained for a long period of time. Because computer technology often changes rapidly, even over only a year or two, the backup system used may become obsolete while the backup created by the backup system remains in storage. For example, new and improved backup systems may be installed, which access different types or sizes of storage devices. If reference is made to the archival backup, new backups systems must be able to access the data without performing a conversion of the backup.